1. Technical Field
The present invention is directed toward quick release buckles of the type used for tethering a tool to an object or the body of a person and more particularly to a strain relief for a quick release buckle.
2. Background Art
Many tools are either carried on a person, stored in a holster, pouch or pocket, or attached to a permanent fixture. The use of lanyard tethering devices for protecting such tools against loss or damage while making the tools readily available for easy use is well known in the art. This is achieved through a number of tethering or mounting devices which include neck-type lanyards, wrist-type lanyards and automatic retracting devices utilizing string or cable for the connection media or hard mounted clipping devices. A common feature of such quick release buckles is the ability to connect and disconnect a tool easily from the lanyard tethering device. This function is provided by a number of prior art clipping systems on the market which range from snap clips and split rings to more sophisticated devices such as side release type
Bakker et al., in U.S. Pat. No. 4,171,555, disclose a plastic buckle adapted to adjustably secure extremities of a web-like material. The buckle includes a frame-like body portion, fastening means at one end of the body portion for fixedly securing the buckle to one extremity of said web-like material and means for adjusting the opposite extremity of the web-like material including two transverse parallel bars positioned adjacent the opposite end of the body portion.
Another buckle of the quick release type is disclosed by Tracy in U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,464. The Tracy buckle includes separable cooperating receptacle and clasp members. The receptacle member includes a pair of locking slots formed in opposing sides thereof. The clasp member includes a pair of resilient arms having locking tabs thereon for releasably engaging the locking slots of the receptacle member. The receptacle member also includes a pair of grooves for slidably engaging cooperating raised ridges formed on a central arm of the clasp member for guiding said clasp member during insertion into and removal from the receptacle member. The central arm of the clasp member also includes a pair of laterally extending edges for defining a limit to the inward bending of the resilient arms. The receptacle also includes a belt end termination member including a slide member for adjusting the length of a belt looped around said slide member. The clasp member also includes a base member joining the three arms thereof and including a through slot for terminating a belt end or the like.
Prior art quick release buckles lack a feature which can improve the life expectancy of the cable or line of the tethering device such as a self-retracting mechanism such as a strain relief type system at the connection joints. Without such a strain relief system the life expectancy of the cable is, in some cases, extremely low. The term xe2x80x9cstrain reliefxe2x80x9d as used herein, refers to means for protecting the cable from fatigue due to continuos bending at the termination point. The need for improved life expectancy of the cable or line is very important for a device that is intended to protect the gear or tool from loss or damage. Furthermore the capability for being able to connect and disconnect gear may not only be a convenience but also a safety issue. The present invention is directed toward overcoming both of these problems inherent in prior art quick release buckles.
The attachment of the cable/line to the connector and strain relief system is achieved by passing the cable or line into the female component of the connector, through a pivoting ball and terminating the cable with a cable stop or a knot in a line. The Pivoting ball rests in the bottom of the female connector as its securing point. Furthermore, the pivoting ball can rotate thereby providing a strain relief to the cable by allowing the cable a pivot point instead of bending at the termination. In a preferred embodiment, the pivoting ball may have a slot to allow the cable to be attached to the ball after the cable stop has been attached to the cable or a knot has been tied in the line.
Alternatively, the strain relief may be provided through the use of an overmolded housing to prevent the cable/line from bending at the joint as opposed to a strain relief type system that prevents pull on the joint (as cited in U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,821, item 21 and 22, or in U.S. Pat. No. 6,179,104, item 45). Another type of strain relief may be provided through the use of spring system to prevent the cable/line from bending at the joint. The disconnection system has been designed to provide significant holding force while allowing the gear or tool to be connected to or disconnected from the female connector easily and without degradation to the part. A commonly used side release system has been incorporated into the present invention. Alternately, any number of connect/disconnect systems may be used in accordance with the buckle strain relief mechanism of the present invention to achieve similar results.
The features of the invention believed to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. However the invention itself, both as to organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages thereof may be best be understood by reference to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: